


The Collector

by Kateera



Category: Hannibal (TV)
Genre: Established Relationship, Fluff and Crack, Hannibal is Not a Cannibal, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-22
Updated: 2017-05-22
Packaged: 2018-11-03 11:53:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,681
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10966686
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kateera/pseuds/Kateera
Summary: Will meets Hannibal's friends. Will questions his life choices. Will accepts his life choices. Will embraces his life choices, and his weird as hell boyfriend.





	The Collector

**Author's Note:**

> You can blame and or thank [AdeptAdherent](http://archiveofourown.org/users/Raindrop150/pseuds/AdeptAdherent) for this idea! Work is un-beta'd so if there are mistakes, I'm sorry. Written for the #ReleaseTheCrackin fest and presented for your enjoyment. 
> 
>  
> 
> [TWITTER](https://twitter.com/kateera_)  
> [TUMBLR](http://kateera.tumblr.com/)

Will tugged at the tie around his neck and smoothed a hand down his jacket as if checking to make sure it was still him under all the fabric. Hannibal told him last week that he wanted Will to meet his friends and while the very thought of being around that many people gave Will hives (well it was some kind of rash and he had a cream now) he couldn’t watch that hopeful smile fade from Hannibal’s face. He’d be miserable and grumpy the whole night but Hannibal would be ecstatic at his presence.

 

“You love your boyfriend and this is not a big deal. His friends will hate you and then you can hide in the bedroom and read.” His pep talk to the mirror didn’t help his mood but it did bring Winston over who proceeded to rub against Will’s leg and leave dog hair clinging to the soft fabric.

 

“Fuck you, Winston.”

 

Winston whined and wagged his tail. Picking up the lint roller, Will dragged it across the ends of his trousers before giving up and throwing the hair covered roller on his dresser.

 

“This is as good as it gets.” Will frowned and tugged at his tie again, checking his watch to make sure he could still make it to Baltimore on time.

 

Winston barked and jumped on the bed, rubbing his head on Will’s pillow before settling in the middle. Will sighed.

 

****

 

The outside of Hannibal’s house was empty and Will parked in the driveway with his nerves on overdrive. Just because he couldn’t see the cars didn’t mean that no one was there and there was no way people wouldn’t show up to a Hannibal Lecter party. Straightening his tie for the thirty second time only delayed the inevitable for so long and Will stepped out of his car and walked to the imposing front door like a man headed for the noose. 

 

_ I can do this. I talk to students all the time. I can pretend they are all interested in criminal justice. Fuck, why am I dating such a socialite? _

 

He knew the answer to that of course; Hannibal accepted all his quirks and made him smile just by thinking about him and did this thing with his tongue that drove Will wild. All the socializing and grand parties wouldn’t be enough to scare Will away, even if it did make him sweat in a rather unattractive manner.

 

Hannibal threw the door open with a wide grin on his face and Will couldn’t help but smile back at the joy radiating from him. Looking devastatingly handsome in his dark blue suit with pale pink accents, Hannibal drew Will into his arms and kissed him until Will didn’t care who might be waiting for them.

  
  


“Come in, come in,” Hannibal said with a wave of his hand, “dinner needs to rest a bit so there’s plenty of time to introduce you.”

 

Will kept the smile on his face but it was a close thing. Hannibal closed the door and pressed another kiss to Will’s lips before he stepped back, a wide grin once again stretching across his face. Shedding his coat and a few stray dog hairs, Will hung it from the ornate coat hanger by the door and followed Hannibal into the empty living room. 

 

“Where are your friends?” Will asked, his brow crinkling in worry at the quiet house.

 

Hannibal chuckled and clasped his hands in front of him in a rare display of excitement. “Okay, since you’re so curious, I won’t even offer you a drink first. Follow me.”

 

Will’s worried look deepened but he followed Hannibal through the dimly lit house, past the bedrooms to a locked door at the end of the hall.

 

“Are you planning on killing me?” Will asked with a nervous laugh. He tried to cover it with a cough but only succeeded in sounding like he was choking.

 

“Are you alright?” Hannibal asked.

 

“Oh I’m fine. You might murder me but it’s fine.” Will said and tugged at his tie. 

 

_ Great, now you sound weird. Way to go, you idiot. _

 

Hannibal laughed and threw an arm around Will. “Nothing so morbid, I promise. Now close your eyes.”

 

Will pressed his lips together to hold back his growing number of questions and shut his eyes. The feeling of air brushing against his skin told him Hannibal was waving a hand in front of his face.

 

_ My boyfriend is so weird.  _

 

Will heard the creak of a door and then Hannibal’s gentle hands took his own and led him forward. They entered and Will sent up a prayer that he didn’t look like a complete idiot to a room full of Hannibal’s elite friends. 

 

“Okay, open your eyes.” Hannibal’s voice was low and filled with excitement.

 

Will took a deep breath and slowly opened his eyes, hoping there wasn’t a crowd in front of him waiting to yell surprise. 

 

_ Be honest, you’d rather have this room full of body parts instead actual living people. Shut up. _

 

_ Wait.  _

 

_ What the fuck? _

 

Wall sconces were set every few feet and kept the room filled with a white glow while black satin flowed over the plain shelves that covered the rest of the wall space. On those shelves sat hundreds of Precious Moments figurines, their soft pastel colors enhanced by the black fabric and white light. 

 

“Will, meet everyone. Everyone, meet Will.” Hannibal’s voice changed as he spoke, becoming lower yet softer, like the voice Will used to talk to his dogs. 

 

_ Fuck. What do I do? _

 

Raising his right hand, Will gave a small wave to the figurines and tried to wrap his brain around this side of Hannibal he never saw coming. He stepped back as Hannibal took a walk around the room, straightening the satin and moving some of the small ceramic dolls forward. 

 

Hannibal kept up a steady dialogue as he walked. “Toby, you’ve been hiding for a while now. I think it’s time to take the stage don’t you? There, that’s better. How about we give everyone else more space, Sophia, huh? I’ll be back later to dust, don’t worry. I wanted you to meet Will though. He’s very important to me.”

 

_ He talks to them, like I talk to my dogs These are his friends and he wanted me to meet them. I can’t be sleeping because even my brain wouldn’t dream up something this strange. How is this happening right now? _

 

Will tried the wave again, since it worked so well last time. Hannibal adjusted more of the figurines as he walked back to Will and led him out of the room. He shut off the lights, closed the door, and locked it up with a key he slipped into his front pocket.

 

“They don’t really like the light. You ready for dinner?” Hannibal’s voice returned to it’s normal timbre and Will shivered at the change.

 

_ What the fuck? _

 

Will nodded and followed Hannibal to the dining room where he could sit and eat and not think about the locked room.

  
  


****

  
  


Will kept his silence on Hannibal’s friends until they retreated to the living room to cuddle in front of the fire. He’d latched onto the topic of work at the table, Hannibal always eager to help him with cases, and let his mind adjust to the new information about his boyfriend. Now with a fire burning and a bottle of whiskey sitting on the coffee table, he felt secure enough to broach the subject.

 

“So, um, how long have you collected your...friends?” Will asked, stroking Hannibal’s arms as he asked his question, staring into the flames and pondering a scale by which to judge Hannibal’s hobby. Collecting Precious Moments figurines obviously wasn’t as awful as a room full of eyeballs or decapitated heads, but most men he knew collected books, guns, cars, or even fishing lures, not tiny ceramic figures of children. 

 

Hannibal looked up as if silently counting the years before smiling, “I started when I was thirteen or fourteen. My aunt suggested it as a way to occupy my rather traumatized brain and it helped, still helps. I don’t know where I’d be or what I’d have done without my friends to keep me stable.”

 

Will scratched his head and rubbed at his face and stared at Hannibal. “And um, why Precious Moments?”

 

Hannibal cocked his head. “My aunt had one on her mantle while I lived there. I still have it though I keep it carefully wrapped. I think I was drawn to the different expressions of love they held. I couldn’t understand the subtleties of my own emotions back then but my figurines helped contain and label them.”

 

Sipping his whiskey, Will thought about his own childhood and the dangers of misunderstanding love. Perhaps there was something to Hannibal’s collection beyond the weirdness.

 

“Besides, they are the definition of adorable.”

 

_ Nope, it’s just weird. _

 

Will gulped his whiskey and blessed his habit of silence, a habit that kept him from muttering “what the fuck” a thousand times under his breath.

  
  


****

  
  


Friday night meant dinner with Hannibal and Will pulled into the driveway with a bouquet of roses on the seat next to him. Getting Hannibal flowers felt silly since he probably had better ones growing in his garden but after last weeks revelation, he didn’t want Hannibal to think he’d been scared off. Sure, he freaked a bit, maybe a lot once he was alone. The point was, he didn’t want to stop seeing Hannibal and that meant processing and accepting this new side. He specialized in understanding people so Will felt confident he could succeed. 

 

_ Everyone has weird things about them right? So what if Hannibal collects ceramic dolls, he also cooks like a god, outsmarts everyone in the room, and is fantastic in bed. I don’t need to run because of this. _

 

After his third pep talk of the day (and certainly not his last), Will had stopped at the little flower shop next to his favorite coffee hut and purchased the roses. They looked sad and pathetic now but he wasn’t a coward so Will grabbed the flowers and headed to the front door before he changed his mind. No one answered when he knocked and after a few minutes of standing on the porch and looking increasingly pathetic, Will let himself in with the spare key Hannibal gifted to him a few months ago. The house was quiet but there were smells from the kitchen so Will placed his bouquet on the table and wandered through to the living room. No Hannibal, anywhere. Standing still and listening closely, Will heard murmuring coming from the back room. 

 

_ I shouldn’t go back there. I should stay here and wait for him to come out like a normal person. _

 

Will took his jacket off, draped it across a nearby chair, and ran his hand through his curls. Two deep breaths later, Will groaned quietly and tiptoed his way down the hall. The door to the Precious Moments Room stood slightly open with the lights low and Will could more clearly hear Hannibal’s voice.

 

“And then he kissed me. It wasn’t the greatest kiss of course. I liked it though. His stubble felt nice.”

 

Will frowned and inched closer to look inside the well lit room. Hannibal sat in a red leather chair situated in the corner, a tray on his lap holding several Precious Moments dolls, and he was running a cloth over their pastel ceramic forms.

 

“Yes TImmy, it’s been good. He’s a very nice spirit,” Hannibal said in his softer voice. “I should go check on dinner. Will should be here soon. Thank you for listening.”

 

Hannibal stood with the tray and Will backed away, racing back to the living room and throwing himself in the chair next to the fireplace. By the time Hannibal appeared in the hallway, Will was sitting in a chair, large book draped over his lap, and a slight sweaty sheen to his face.

 

“Oh hello, I didn’t hear you come in.”

 

“Well I do have my own key,” Will said, his smile wavering at the corners. “I didn’t want to bother you if you were in the middle of something important so I let myself in.”

 

Hannibal tilted his head and looked down at the book in Will’s lap. “I see. Well then. Dinner is ready so if you would set the table, I’ll bring out the food.”

 

Will nodded and set the book aside with a relieved sigh.

 

“By the way Will, I had no idea you read hieroglyphics.”

  
  


_ **** _

  
  


Throwing a blanket over his shoulders, Will stepped out onto his porch and smiled at the sight of Hannibal sitting on the top step with Buster curled in his lap. 

 

“Don’t you want to go chase a squirrel or something?” Hannibal asked the dog, his tone a coaxing whine.

 

“Buster, go find Winston.” Will laughed as Buster bounced off Hannibal’s lap and into the field with a loud bark. 

 

Hannibal looked up in relief. “Thank you. I don’t mind petting them of course but Buster is a bit forward.”

 

“I’ll have a talk with him about that tomorrow.”

 

Sitting down next to Hannibal, Will draped the blanket over both their shoulders and shuffled close. The twilight sky hosted a few stars now and Will sighed in relaxed bliss  as Hannibal leaned against him. Hannibal’s head fell to his shoulder and Will placed a kiss on his crown of silver hair.

 

“I have a question.” Will said, his voice barely louder than the rustling grass of the dogs exploring.

 

Hannibal hummed in response and Will continued. “Who else knows about your collection?”

 

Hannibal sat up and looked at Will. “Not many people. My aunt of course and then Alana and you.”

 

“Alana knows?”

 

Hannibal gave a slight nod. “Mhm. She invited me over for dinner quite a bit when we first met and I found a few figurines on her shelves. I thought she would appreciate my collection. When I invited her over to my place, she seemed very excited, but when I showed her my friends, she had a pressing matter to suddenly attend to and left quite quickly.”

 

Will felt a wealth of sympathy rise up at the explanation. He knew Hannibal felt strongly about his large collection of friends and to have someone freak out like that must not have been easy. “I’m sorry Hannibal.”

 

_ Poor man. He must have been terrified of showing me after that catastrophe. _

 

“Why should you be sorry?” Hannibal asked with a raised eyebrow. “She was obviously jealous of my much more refined pieces and I felt sorry for her. I didn’t think she’d take the comparison so hard.”

 

Will blinked and looked out into the fields to readjust his thinking. Hannibal laid his head back onto Will’s shoulder and wrapped his side of the blanket tighter around his shoulders.

  
  


****

  
  


Will grabbed his large mug of coffee, a couple of oat bars Hannibal made him last week, and sat down in front of his laptop. Pulling up the auction website, he logged in as  _ FishingForFlies  _ and made his first bid on the last thing he’d ever expected to buy. The item was a small ceramic girl pulling a cart of puppies and looking serene. The title under it said “God Loveth A Cheerful Giver” and Will groaned for the twenty-second time at the kitchy label.

 

_ Remember you idiot, it’s not for you, it’s for Hannibal, and he will love it. _

 

Once he felt properly chastised for his cringing, Will watched the time and waited to see if anyone would try and outbid him. Sipping from his coffee, Will almost choked when another bidder showed up with price that doubled his own.

 

_ Oh no you don’t, MissManners, I’m not letting some cranky old cat lady get Hannibal’s birthday present. _

 

Will waited until the clock ticked down to one minute left and then posted his next bid, upping the price to over the actual value of the piece and chuckling as he imagined the other bidder’s annoyance. He imagined Hannibal’s face as he unwrapped the gift and smiled. When Hannibal first showed him that back room, Will had honestly been too shocked to do more than nod and wave. Now he planned auction bidding wars to get his hand on one of the small dolls just to see Hannibal’s face light up.

 

_ God, I’m so in love with that weirdo. _

 

Biting into an oat bar, appreciating the tang of ginger on his tongue that Hannibal baked into all of Will’s treats, he wondered about packaging and if he still owned any wrapping paper. Hannibal would appreciate the effort to wrap his gift and Will wrote a small note on the pad of paper next to his laptop to pick up paper and bows. 

 

Five seconds to the close of bidding and  _ MissManners  _ posted again, upping the price by three dollars more than Will and he couldn’t post a new bid fast enough as his hands fumbled at the keyboard. He watched in dismay as the rare vintage treasure was awarded to the old biddy with nothing better to do than crush his plans. 

 

_ Fuck! I lost to a woman who probably smells like cat pee. God damn it. What do I get him now? _

  
  


****

  
  


“Will, this is beautiful,” Hannibal remarked with sincere pleasure. 

 

Sitting in Hannibal’s hands was a hand carved box with the word RECIPES burned in flowing script to the top. It was polished to a bright shine and Will had even added a small antler decoration to the sides. Will knew Hannibal would love it but his mouth twisted at the bitter thought of the gift he’d tried to procure, something to show he accepted Hannibal exactly as he was. 

 

“I’m glad you like it,” Will said and took a gulp of wine. 

 

“I’ll put it to good use,” Hannibal said before pressing a kiss to Will’s temple and setting the box on the nearby coffee table. 

 

Will nodded, his thoughts still on  _ MIssManners  _ and how he’d like to track her down and give her a piece of his mind. 

 

“Will, are you alright?”

 

He jumped and sighed at Hannibal’s concern, “Sorry, I know you love the gift. It wasn’t my first choice though so I’m disappointed in myself. I didn’t mean to bring down the mood. Happy Birthday Hannibal.”

 

Giving him a bright smile, Will lifted himself into Hannibal’s lap and settled with a little wiggle. He wanted this evening to be amazing. Kissing up Hannibal’s neck, Will murmured words of desire and love into his skin, determined to squash his disappointment.

 

Hannibal pulled back and held Will’s face in his hands, “Maybe talking about it will help? What has you so upset?”

 

Will rested his head against Hannibal’s forehead and let out a long sigh. “There was this really rare Precious Moments figurine on Ebay that I wanted to get you. It was supposed to show that I love everything about you, including your friends. But then this harpy of a bidder came in and swooped it out of my hands. If I ever find this  _ MissManners _ then you should walk away because I’ll be screaming at some blue haired old lady in a cat print dress.”

 

Will drew in a sharp breath at the end of his rant and looked down to see Hannibal staring at him with amusement in his eyes. 

 

“What?” Will asked, his face flushing from the release of all his frustration. He hadn’t meant to unleash on Hannibal but once he’d started, it all flooded out of him.

 

Hannibal brought his face down for a long languorous kiss. “I’ve never had anyone champion for me in such a manner.”

 

Will laid his head on Hannibal’s shoulder. “Well it just means I’m as crazy as you are.”

 

Hannibal hummed. “Can I show you something?”

 

Will nodded and slid from Hannibal’s lap, holding his hand out for Hannibal’s and helping him from the couch. They walked down the hall and Hannibal opened the door to his treasures. The feeling of slipping from reality settled on Will, as it did every time he entered the room filled with the tiny dolls, but he pushed it down and stood silently at the threshold. Hannibal gave his hand a squeeze and walked further into the room, moving to a shelf in the back and picking up one of the figurines. Bringing it to Will, who still felt like he shouldn’t intrude farther into the private space, Hannibal held out the small doll with a smile.

 

Sitting in Hannibal’s hand was the figurine of a young girl pulling a cart full of puppies. Will’s eyes must have shown his confusion because Hannibal placed the treasure in Will’s hand.

 

“I have found that I can garner sympathy from people by pretending to be an old cat lady. They give up easier. Will, I’m  _ MissManners.” _

 

Will looked down at the figurine, the girls teardrop eyes looking at him with happy serenity, and started laughing. He gave the doll back to Hannibal, tears falling from his cheeks as his laughter filled the small room. Hannibal put the girl back on the shelf and turned back to Will with barely concealed hurt. 

 

“No, Hannibal, no.” Will reassured him through his wheezing laughs. “I’m not laughing at you, well, not really. I’m laughing because I’ve been railing against  _ MissManners _ in my head all night and I just pictured you with blue hair, wearing a cat print dress and oh god!”

 

Will fell out of the room to brace himself on the wall as his laughter flowed through him. Hannibal exited the room, closed the door behind him, and posed with a hand on his hip.

 

“What kind of cats were on the dress?”

 

Will fell to the floor in another laughing fit and looked up to see Hannibal smiling down on him. 

 

“I love you, you crazy man," Will said after he'd recovered enough to speak.

 

“I love you too, equally crazy man.”

  
  



End file.
